The Correlation between Ventricular Repolarization and Clinical Severity of Spinal Cord Injuries.

MedLine Citation:

PMID:
21277998
Owner:
NLM
Status:
Publisher

Abstract/OtherAbstract:

BACKGROUND: Alteration in ventricular repolarization has been reported in patients with spinal cord injuries (SCIs). However, its clinical impact remains unclear. OBJECTIVES: The study investigated the correlation between SCIs and ventricular repolarization, and the associated clinical impact. METHODS: One hundred and forty-four patients with an SCI were retrospectively reviewed, and were divided into two groups (SCI level ≤ T6, n = 110; SCI level > T6, n = 34). The electrocardiograms were reviewed during acute phase (at emergency room) and chronic phase (more than one year). RESULTS: There were no differences in the underlying diseases, or in ASIA score between the two groups, except there were more patients with tetraplegia among those with an SCI level ≤ T6. For the electrophysiological parameters from the ECGs, the patients with an SCI level ≤ T6 had longer QTc and PR interval than those with an SCI level > T6 during acute phase. In the chronic phase, there were no differences in the electrophysiological parameters between the two groups. Only in patients with an SCI level ≤ T6, a Kaplan-Meier analysis showed that QTc prolongation could predict 30-day mortality after the acute injury. After multivariate Cox regression analysis, only tetraplegia and QTc prolongation were independent predictors of 30-day mortality (odds ratios: 7.85 and 34.62, respectively). In patients with an SCI level ≤ T6, the QTc intervals were shorter in the chronic phase than those during the acute phase. CONCLUSION: QTc interval was associated with the level of acute SCI and predicted the 30-day mortality.